MAF’s two youngest aircraft in Papua New Guinea have seen plenty of action in the isolated Western and West Sepik Provinces – the donated aircraft both serving some of the remotest communities in the nation by flying students, store goods, vegetables and patients.
Story by Michelle Dauth
“I just flew a very sick child out of Wobagen to Kiunga. He’s waiting at Kiunga Base for an ambulance now,” says Richard Wall, pilot of Cessna Caravan ‘P2-AFD’.
The critically ill boy needed urgent medical attention not available in Wobagen, a roadless mountain community. The child had been brought to the airstrip by community members to await an MAF flight to the nearest hospital.
Without this flight, the boy would have had to be carried on foot through thick rainforests, across mountains and rivers – a journey that would have seriously endangered his life. Upon arrival at the MAF base in Kiunga, an ambulance transferred him to the hospital.
P2-AFD also delivered 960 kg of trade-store supplies and iron roofing into the remote community of Tekin.
From Tekin to Tabubil it takes about one week to walk, but with MAF, it’s only 30 minutes.
Trade stores are small locally owned businesses that enable economic development in remote communities – helping families to have cash income to support their children’s education. Store goods such as tinned fish and corned beef can supplement the people’s sweet potato staple, and simple condiments like salt and oil can make all the difference to their everyday meals.
From Tekin the flight then carried 848 kg of locally grown vegetables to the mining town of Tabubil. For many years, the people of Tekin have grown and sold vegetables in order to generate steady cash income to sustain their day-to-day life.
“From Tekin to Tabubil it takes about one week to walk,” says Kewa Imowa, one of MAF’s ground crew. “But with MAF, it’s only 30 minutes.”
Another recent addition to the fleet, ‘P2-GRA’, carried a group of students from Kiunga to the remote village of Mougulu, ensuring they reached their secondary school safely.
“Mougulu is one of the remotest places in the Western Province,” Kewa says. Walking the distance of approximately 125 kilometres from Kiunga to Mougulu takes about one week trekking in the bush – there are no roads.
“With MAF, they can travel from Mougulu to Kiunga in about an hour.”
A Western Province man himself, Kewa is well aware of the barriers to efficient and safe transport without aviation.
“The difficulties that people face, especially in swampy places, is that they have to paddle by canoes. And there are some risks involved. There are many malaria mosquitoes. It is also where you can find snakes.
“Personally, I would say that MAF is doing a great job by helping people in the remotest parts of the country.
“Over the years, MAF has been the only source of transport for rural people to get to nearby towns to access basic government services,” adds Kewa. “If there were no MAF aircraft moving around in those remote places, then I think people would be still living like their ancestors. So MAF not only provides transport, but also brings in civilization to these people.”